Phillies will stay on rotation
News blogs, sports blogs, entertainment blogs, and more from Philly.com, The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News.
Phillies will stay on rotation
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
With the third-place Florida Marlins coming to town for a three-day, four-game series, the Phillies will not alter their rotation. An off day on Monday allows them to do that.
So Cole Hamels will pitch Tuesday with Kyle Kendrick and Roy Halladay pitching in the doubleheader. Halladay will pitch on regular rest; Kendrick has an extra day of rest after only throwing 44 pitches in his last outing. That leaves Cliff Lee on regular rest for Thursday in the series finale.
Roy Oswalt would start the first Interleague game in Seattle on Friday and then the Phillies would have to either pitch Hamels on short rest or use a spot starter. Pitching coach Rich Dubee would not say what his plans are, but it's hard to believe they would throw Hamels on short rest in the middle of June. Vance Worley has pitched well at triple A and this could be the best time for him to return; by then he will have accumulated three starts for the IronPigs.
Adding a pitcher like Worley for the spot start would be feasible. David Herndon, who is on the Allentown express, could be optioned to free up the roster spot.
In the four-game series, the Marlins will start RHP Chris Volstad, RHP Anibal Sanchez, TBA, RHP Javy Vazquez. The second doubleheader starter is reportedly between three pitchers: RHP Chris Samspon, RHP Elih Villanueva or RHP Tom Koehler. Villanueva and Koehler have never appeared in the majors. Sampson has not started a major-league game since 2008.
So the schedule looks as such:
Monday: OFF
Tuesday vs. FLA: Hamels
Wednesday vs. FLA: Kendrick, Halladay
Thursday vs. FLA: Lee
Friday at SEA: Oswalt
Saturday at SEA: TBA
Sunday at SEA: Hamels
Monday: OFF
Tuesday at STL: Halladay
Wednesday at STL: Lee
Thursday at STL: Oswalt
Have a question? Send it to Matt Gelb's Mailbag.
Download our NEW iPhone/Android app for easy access to all of our Phillies coverage, plus app-exclusive videos and analysis. Get it here.
It's time for the Phils to cut bait on Romero & go with Zagurski as the spot lefty. Baez has been pitching better while Romero can't throw strikes. If you can't trust him to hold a 7-0 lead, when can you use him?— PJH- While I agree that it is time to roll with Big Mike Zagurski in that role, you can't lay all the blame in that inning on Romero. Contreas was at least equally as awful. I know Zagurski has a problem throwing strikes too, but at least he can miss bats.— Armyofthe15Monkies
- Army-I will lay blame on Romero...Yes, while some of those runners responsibilities came from Contreras, he just came off the DL recently. Romero has had a career of inconsitentcy...(except his time on the mystery drugs)— PhilliefaninAZ
- Forgot about the DH on Wednesday. Saturday night was looking like a nice matchup between King Felix and Hamels. Oh wells, maybe the Mariners move King to Sunday. As for the Zagurski/Romero debate, I wouldn't trust either of them at the moment. Zags has done nothing in the past to make anyone fall in love with him. This is probably an area where the Phils make a trade for someone. Marshall from the Cubs was doing very well as a spot lefty before we smacked him around.— ESFjellin
- Worley is a no brainer to start, but you gotta figure you cut Romero loose for good, before you send down Herndon again. He is developing into a very good reliever as I always said he would from the first time I saw him throw in FL. He misses and breaks a lot of bats. All Romero is capable of is missing the strike zone.— Mark1npt
- So we are not short in the bullpen for the weekend series, we should call up Gordon to start the doubleheader, and bring Kendrick back to long man role, so we don't have another train wreck like we had Thursday night...— PhilliefaninAZ
- Romero was lights out when he came to the Phillies in '07 and he was good in '08 too. Whether that's due to the juice or not, only he knows for sure. But he's definitely become a liability and its time to cut him loose. Zagurski isn't the answer though. He's as bad as Romero. They need to make a trade for another lefty reliever. There are certainly enough of them around (as Howard and Utley can attest to) and someone decent is bound to be available at the trade deadline.— SteveS11
- tell jc to go back on the juice or cut him— Ted Mosby
- I would keep Herndon around and cut Romero when they need Worley to make a start, the guy just can't get anyone out anymore. Well at least not since 2008. The thing that pisses me off the most about him is how cocky he is out there on the mound even when he walks two straight guys and is up there throwing meatballs when he can't hit the strike zone. He's awful and is delusional in thinking he still has something left. Let the kids pitch, they act like they at least need to earn their way here and not entitled like JC. This bullpen does not need two lefties, they can get by with just Bastardo, they need more quality. If not Herndon, then there are a few guys in Lehigh Valley that could pitch 10 times better than JC has.— robm0202
- Vance Worley would be a welcome addition back. It would have been interesting to see where his game would be at now, if he had been left in his original starter role. Two games and one run allowed in his first two decisions. Not bad. It is funny how the baseball savvy people say that you can't go back and forth in moves between starters and relievers, because they are distinct roles and not interchangeable on a day to day or week by week basis. Yet management did not think twice about using Worley that way. Ricky Bo stated vehemently on WIP that it was not so much Worleys last outing that got him sent packing back to Lehigh, but his comments that he was tired and his questioning how he was being used this way? How rereshing someone actually not giving the same candid line of baseball rhetoric. Heck if Worleys simple comments was a show of disrespect as Ricky Bo says, then David Murphy should be sent to China in a slow boat. Murphy steps on every senior sportswiters dialogue whenever I see him on the tube. I guess earning it only applies to the athletes and not the reporters. I hope the Phils give Worley a chance and let him pitch again in the 5th starter role. Blanton is not coming back soon and when he does ....who cares. Kendrick serves better as long reliever.— rockinrob
- Do it Vance— shawnmac
- RAJ, call EZ and get this stuff into motion.— NewMick314
- Kendrick and Hallady pitching the DH? It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...— Eephus
- Trade the relievers , Baez, JC, Herndon to the Yankees for their new RH OF they just brought up today. Then forget the lefty spotter and go with 3 Lehigh pitchers, Worley, Scott M., and Gordon or Carpenter.— Koons
- fat boy zagurski sucks just as bad as romero what are you fools talking about— AlexSp
- If it is not broken, do not fix it. The Phillies starters are doing fine on regular rest! Bring Worley up to spot start. The last starter to mess with is Hamels. Hamels is in the groove now, do not do anything to change it.— jpelle36
- Koons is really kidding on the Yank trade stuff in case you folks dont appreciate that his sense of humor is a tad off center,— NewMick314
Comment removed.
